DALLAS  Southwest Airlines, which has posed stewardesses in hot pants and the CEO with a bag over his head to sell tickets, is launching a new campaign that tells consumers to get over the recession and fly again.

One spot ends with the narrator saying, "We don't fly around tough times. How about you?"

The ads feature the tagline, "Grab Your Bag. It's On."

Created by Southwest's longtime advertising agency, GSD&M in Austin, Texas, the new spots lack the punch lines and laugh-out-loud humor of past campaigns. That's because they're intended for a more sober time, Southwest officials say.

"It's an image campaign to reflect what we hope is the view of the American public that it's kind of time to put the challenges and difficulties of the past year behind and get going," said Dave Ridley, Southwest's senior vice president of marketing.

The "It's On" spots will replace a year-long campaign that poked other airlines for charging fees to check baggage.

Last week, Southwest itself unveiled new fees to take pets on board and to let unaccompanied minors fly. Ridley said there was no connection between those charges and the end of the "No Hidden Fees" ad campaign.

Southwest appeared to decide that the furor over fees had run its course, and that there was nothing to be gained by running more commercials with the same theme. Chief Executive Gary Kelly said last month that surveys showed most Southwest customers know about other airlines charging fees for checked bags.

Ridley said the new commercials weren't designed to drive traffic overnight. For that, Southwest will keep using separate ads that emphasize fare sales.

Kelly appears in one ad, although without the paper bag that then-CEO Herb Kelleher wore in a 1988 commercial.

And unlike a classic from 1972, there are no pretty young women breathlessly telling viewers, "Remember what it was like before Southwest Airlines? You didn't have hostesses in hot pants. Remember?"

Southwest declined to say how much it will spend on the "It's On" campaign. Last year, Dallas-based Southwest Airlines Co. spent $199 million on advertising, or about 2% of its budget.

Ridley said the spots would show up on morning talk and evening news shows plus sporting events, including the NBA Finals. He said they would run as long as they're effective.

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